


Unexpected

by underground_archivist



Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: Alternate Universe, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-07-25
Updated: 2008-07-25
Packaged: 2020-07-30 10:48:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20096035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/underground_archivist/pseuds/underground_archivist
Summary: When Sarah confronts Jareth at the end of Labyrinth, things go a little differently then what you think they did. Rated T for appropriate situations. For the ‘Fluffy Bunny’ Challenge on HPFC.





	Unexpected

**Author's Note:**

> Note from banshee, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Underground](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Underground_\(Labyrinth_archive\)) and was moved to the AO3 as part of the Open Doors project in 2019. I tried to reach out to all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are the creator and would like to claim this work, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Underground’s collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/underground/profile).
> 
> _Summary: When Sarah confronts Jareth at the end of Labyrinth, things go a little differently then what you think they did. Rated T for appropriate situations. For the ‘Fluffy Bunny’ Challenge on HPFC._
> 
> _I claim no ownership to Labyrinth or any of these characters. The idea for this challenge belongs to Megsy when hearing the success of one of my other stories suggested this._

Unexpected

From behind the stone column, Jareth could see Sarah falling from the Escher room above. He clenched his fists at his sides, and swallowed hard. Spirits, did she not know what she did to him? She was destroying everything she came across and was taking his heart in the process.

Her feet landed on the ground, and Sarah looked around. For him or the babe? The child was gone. _Long _gone. He’d never even been to the Labyrinth. A simple illusion had been enough to convince Sarah that her brother was missing. She hadn’t wished her brother away after all – she had said the wrong words. The right words though…

“_Somebody save me! Somebody take me away from this awful place!”_

Those were words gleefully answered.

Jareth stepped from around the column. His feathered cape drifted behind him. If there was a wind it would have fluttered, but Jareth had thought enough illusion was going on in the moment that wind wasn’t needed.

Their eyes met. Jareth’s heart skipped a beat.

“Give me the child,” she demanded.

Jareth nearly sighed at this. Really, was she back to her silly recitations? Why wouldn’t she throw herself at his feet already?

“Sarah, beware. I have been generous until now, but I can be cruel.” His tone was warning, but she stayed defiant.

“Generous?” Sarah scoffed. “How have you been generous?”

“Everything!” Jareth began to circle her. “Everything that I have done, I have done for you. You asked to be taken away to be ‘saved’ and I did that-”

“Wait-a-sec,” Sarah interrupted. “I didn’t ask for _me_ to be taken away. I wished for Toby to-“

He interrupted her, “Don’t you remember, Sarah? How you wished to be away from that ‘awful place’? How you wished to be ‘saved’?”

Jareth could see her eyes widen in realization. Her fists clenched. “Where’s Toby?”

He shook his head. So single-minded! “In his crib, Sarah, where he’s been this entire time.”

Sarah’s eyes blazed. “What?” she growled.

Jareth could have chuckled at her feistyness. “He’s been in his crib the entire time, Sarah. Really, you shouldn’t believe everything you see and-”

“Are you telling me that I just ran my way through this Labyrinth, practically _killing _myself for no good reason?”

He grinned at her, and stepped forward, arms open wide. “Indeed, Sarah. Because you have me now of course. Your savior.” Another step. “Your hero.” She took one back. “Your protector.” He took a step forward. “Your master.” Still she fleed, but his voice was quieter now, more distinct and a murmur. “Your lover.”

Her reaction was not what he expected.

“Ew!” she cried, scrunching her eyes up and looking away. “That is _so_ wrong. You’re _so_ much older than me, and that’s just _nasty_.”

Jareth could literally hear his heart shattering and falling to the ground in a tinkling of pieces. She did not…

“I wouldn’t ugh, be with you if you were the last person in the world!” Sarah cried, disgusted.

More pieces fell.

“You’re effing evil!”

The pieces stopped. Evil? Was that the problem? He could make that work. Yes he most certainly could… he suddenly glared at the woman he had done everything for.

“Evil?” he sneered. “I have not been evil. _You _on the other hand you little, spoiled, girl are. Look!” Jareth gestured to the landscape about. “Look at what you have done, Sarah! You’ve destroyed my labyrinth.” As if! “You’ve turned my subjects into traitors!” This had been planned beforehand. “You went and wrecked a perfectly good bridge in my Bog.” He’d been wanting to replace it for years. “And now, now…” he sighed dramatically, even bringing a tear to his eyes. “You’ve gone and broken my heart.”

Sarah just stared at him. Her jaw dropped.

“Broke your heart? _Broke_ your heart? Broke _your_ heart? Broke-_?”_

He glared. “Yes, you broke my heart!”

Sarah had the grace to snort. “Clearly not. Can I go home now since I beat you?”

A slight smile came to his face. “Actually, your time ran out back when we were talking about your brother. You’re here for eternity.”

Her jaw fell to the floor yet again.

“And you _have_ broken my heart,” he added, getting back on top of things, interrupting her about to be spoken protests at her new living arrangements. Turning away, he sniffled loudly and said, “Oh Sarah, I would have given you everything if you would just let me!” He waited with bated breath that she would say the set of important words…

“And me letting you is about as likely as the Bog smelling like peonies.”

Jareth actually considered for a moment how hard that would be. But he shook his head immediately knowing it to be impossible. Some things just _weren’t_ worth it. But this idea…

“You leave me no choice,” the King choked out, as if he was holding back sobs. With a flourish, he summoned a knife from the air. Silver blade and ivory handle, it looked incredibly sleek.

He turned back towards Sarah, holding the knife out in front of himself. Her eyebrows raised and she took another step back. Jareth wondered where her brains and love of Shakespeare had gone.

Then he remembered Othello. Damn.

Maneuvering the blade to just over his heart, Jareth said in his most tender voice, “I’d rather die than live without you, Sarah. I ask for so little Sarah – just fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave.”

Sarah seemed to think about it for a moment before saying, “Go to hell.”

Jareth’s jaw dropped this time. She did not just say…she did not just turn him down, did she? But above all things she didn’t say _those_ words, did she?

The blade, as if it suddenly had a mind of it’s own, removed itself from Jareth’s hands and started to move backwards away from himself. Jareth watched in horror as it slung back – before shooting forward.

He fell, breathing hard, trying to make eye-contact with Sarah. Her eyes were wide with repulsion, and she had a hand clasped to her mouth. Her face looked green.

Jareth looked down and saw that the pale nature of his skin was already waning. Crimson blood (who knew he could bleed?) was dripping from the wound. Feeling dizzy, he grasped at the hilt and _tugged_. The blade came free in his hands, and though his vision was clouding over he could see the problem.

The blade was pure iron.

Pain overriding (and his heart still breaking of course) he couldn’t hold himself up any longer and glanced towards Sarah again. Still she just stared, frozen in space. Spirits! Why didn’t she just…The pain rised, overwhelming Jareth.

The last thing he ever heard as he collapsed into permanent unconsciousness was from his beloved’s lips. Unfortunately it was the following, non-helpful thing:

“Oops?”


End file.
